Middletown substation gets approval

LAKE COUNTY -- The Sheriff's Office could have a new South County substation in a couple of months after the Board of Supervisors (BOS) Tuesday approved of purchasing property in Middletown for that purpose.

"I'm really excited. I'm absolutely ecstatic," Sheriff Frank Rivero said after the BOS meeting at the Lake County Courthouse.

Opening a substation along Highway 29 in south Lake County became a priority for Rivero since taking office last year. He said county staff honed in on a southern Middletown property about six months ago.

The site, located at 21277 Calistoga St. (which is Highway 29), provided the department the chance to have a "high-profile presence right on the highway," Rivero said.

The property sold for $355,000 in 2005, but later got foreclosed on and was listed for sale at $299,000 one year ago, according to County Administrator Kelly Cox. A more recent listing had it available for $285,000, he added.

Cox said an independent appraisal valued the property at $247,000.

The county submitted an offer of $245,000 but eventually negotiated the price down to $205,000, Cox said.

The 2011-12 county budget appropriated $350,000 for the purchase of a South County substation.